Hack Patooey:The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

I'm pretty sure common sense isn't necessary to get a license anymore. I actually know people that will get on an expressway, even if there is a more direct route, simply because it is the only way they know how to get anywhere.I can't believe it still happens in an age where GPS is so common.

They rigged up a ramp where anyone can get on the thing and only once you're committed do you realize that there's no toll-taker option. You either have the EZ-Pass radio transponder or you don't. The sign informing you "EZ-Pass Required" is little more than the sign you might have in your neighborhood reading, "Cloaca Lane" or "Mutton Road".

And once you're in, there's no way out NOR do you have any idea what fate awaits you if you don't pay the toll. Could be the Drone comes out of the Pentagon and Hellfire's your illicit motoring ass. Could be the whole thing locks up like those giant steel plates that come up out of the ground around the Capitol Building and other super-secure locations around here. Rather than risk such a fate, the only alternative is to back your shiat on up the ramp to freedom and hope your friendly fellow motorists will take sympathy on you.

Turns out it's a minor fine if you don't have the EZ-Pass, something like $12.50 plus a $1.50 handling fee. They should make the EZ-Pass Required sign a GIANT farking billboard, screaming at you, some radio message broadcasting at 10 Million Megawatts across the entire radio spectrum so that no matter what you're tuned to it'll scream "YOU MUST HAVE AN EZ-PASS OR THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WILL HOLD YOU DOWN AND ADMINISTER AN ANGRY JAILHOUSE FISTFARK!" or some such warning.

Hack Patooey:The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

I saw a car stop on the beltway so that it could get over two lanes to exit. Full out stop on an interstate highway so it could exit. I'm still amazed there were no accidents form that. It's a testament to the rest of the drivers that the idiots don't cause more wrecks.

This construction has been going on for a LONG time, and they've been putting signs up (both fixed and electronic) warning about this for WEEKS. All EZ-pass users have also received snail mail explaining IN DETAIL what's happening, how to handle it, and what you need to do in case you want an HOV-capable EZ-pass.

I'm not surprised that someone tried to get on, and either panicked when they saw a cop (and tried to get off), or actually STOPPED and tried to back up. It's HOV people. The slug lines have this down to a science, with no Gov't interference, and it works great. Why can't you read a simple sign?

AngryJailhouseFistfark:They rigged up a ramp where anyone can get on the thing and only once you're committed do you realize that there's no toll-taker option. You either have the EZ-Pass radio transponder or you don't. The sign informing you "EZ-Pass Required" is little more than the sign you might have in your neighborhood reading, "Cloaca Lane" or "Mutton Road".

And once you're in, there's no way out NOR do you have any idea what fate awaits you if you don't pay the toll. Could be the Drone comes out of the Pentagon and Hellfire's your illicit motoring ass. Could be the whole thing locks up like those giant steel plates that come up out of the ground around the Capitol Building and other super-secure locations around here. Rather than risk such a fate, the only alternative is to back your shiat on up the ramp to freedom and hope your friendly fellow motorists will take sympathy on you.

Turns out it's a minor fine if you don't have the EZ-Pass, something like $12.50 plus a $1.50 handling fee. They should make the EZ-Pass Required sign a GIANT farking billboard, screaming at you, some radio message broadcasting at 10 Million Megawatts across the entire radio spectrum so that no matter what you're tuned to it'll scream "YOU MUST HAVE AN EZ-PASS OR THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WILL HOLD YOU DOWN AND ADMINISTER AN ANGRY JAILHOUSE FISTFARK!" or some such warning.

AngryJailhouseFistfark:They rigged up a ramp where anyone can get on the thing and only once you're committed do you realize that there's no toll-taker option. You either have the EZ-Pass radio transponder or you don't. The sign informing you "EZ-Pass Required" is little more than the sign you might have in your neighborhood reading, "Cloaca Lane" or "Mutton Road".

And once you're in, there's no way out NOR do you have any idea what fate awaits you if you don't pay the toll. Could be the Drone comes out of the Pentagon and Hellfire's your illicit motoring ass. Could be the whole thing locks up like those giant steel plates that come up out of the ground around the Capitol Building and other super-secure locations around here. Rather than risk such a fate, the only alternative is to back your shiat on up the ramp to freedom and hope your friendly fellow motorists will take sympathy on you.

Turns out it's a minor fine if you don't have the EZ-Pass, something like $12.50 plus a $1.50 handling fee. They should make the EZ-Pass Required sign a GIANT farking billboard, screaming at you, some radio message broadcasting at 10 Million Megawatts across the entire radio spectrum so that no matter what you're tuned to it'll scream "YOU MUST HAVE AN EZ-PASS OR THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WILL HOLD YOU DOWN AND ADMINISTER AN ANGRY JAILHOUSE FISTFARK!" or some such warning.

No, what they need is a positional sensor that can activate your phone and send a bluetooth text that covers the entire screen. After all if you are worried about signage, you need to put the sign on what people are actually looking at.

Special roads for rich people. Let me know when we can begin to tar and feather the so called progressives that created this fubar.

I've reviewed the website and I'm afraid of accidentally getting on this thing. Once you enter its nor clear where exactly it will take you. Also, I'm only a simple Obamanaire, I couldn't afford to drive this thing until my household income goes well above $500K.

But I do get a kick of how they plan to run this thing on the honor system. If you can afford the flex pass then you will be on the honor system and not have to pay any actual tolls.

Seems like it would have made sense to make the HOT lanes toll- (and citation-) free for a week or two so that people could get used to them, rather than try to turn on the Cash Machine on Day 1. Now you've got people backing up on the expressway and causing multi-car accidents because they don't want to get a ticket.

david_gaithersburg:Special roads for rich people. Let me know when we can begin to tar and feather the so called progressives that created this fubar.

I've reviewed the website and I'm afraid of accidentally getting on this thing. Once you enter its nor clear where exactly it will take you. Also, I'm only a simple Obamanaire, I couldn't afford to drive this thing until my household income goes well above $500K.

But I do get a kick of how they plan to run this thing on the honor system. If you can afford the flex pass then you will be on the honor system and not have to pay any actual tolls.

David david david, this is not a special road for rich people, it is a special road for important people. People who have things to do and people to see. People who need to get things done! People quite unlike yourself, apparently, for you don't know how the pass system works. Because there will be fines, david, for those unimportant people that want to use the lanes without paying for the privelidge. Oh yes! Fines out the yin-yang, and it's all done electronically. No cops needed, which frees them up to attend to the crashes I guess.

david_gaithersburg:But I do get a kick of how they plan to run this thing on the honor system. If you can afford the flex pass then you will be on the honor system and not have to pay any actual tolls.

AngryJailhouseFistfark:Turns out it's a minor fine if you don't have the EZ-Pass, something like $12.50 plus a $1.50 handling fee. They should make the EZ-Pass Required sign a GIANT farking billboard, screaming at you, some radio message broadcasting at 10 Million Megawatts across the entire radio spectrum so that no matter what you're tuned to it'll scream "YOU MUST HAVE AN EZ-PASS OR THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WILL HOLD YOU DOWN AND ADMINISTER AN ANGRY JAILHOUSE FISTFARK!" or some such warning.

Don't be stupid, I'm driving here; I don't have time to look out the windows or read road signs.

pag1107:I'm sure the obscene fine in place for not having an ez-pass had nothing to do with this.

This is precisely what occurred to me. Sucker 'em onto the lane thinking they can pay the toll in cash like you can on the Dulles Toll Road or the Dulles Greenway, only to find the cold, uncaring gaze of the camera and radio beacon scrutinizing you.

Hack Patooey:The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

Not only do I see this all the time, some farkwit BACKED INTO ME once! Going onto an entrance ramp and the car started giving me issues--wouldn't accelerate right, almost every idiot light on the dash starts flashing. Didn't want to pull onto a busy highway when she's acting up, so I pulled onto the shoulder & called AAA. As I'm waiting, a white commercial pickup truck passes me, goes onto the shoulder, and starts backing up. I figure he's being a good Samaritan and wants to see if he can help. Except that he's not slowing down. Hit the horn but the car's turned off--no horn. By the time I turn on the ignition to try the horn again or maybe try to get the hell out of the way, the asshole slams right into me. Bumper crumples, trailer hitch on the back of the truck punctures the radiator. When he tries to pull forward, he nearly rips the radiator out of the engine. No injuries, thankfully, just utter incredulity.

Luckily, the 2 guys he was with told the cops the truth. I don't think anyone, myself included, would EVER believe that somebody got backed into on the shoulder of a busy highway ramp. But it happened.

/CSB//VW's apparently have a "limp-home" mode (Emergency Running Mode). That's what kicked in that day. Never experienced it before.

pag1107:I'm sure the obscene fine in place for not having an ez-pass had nothing to do with this.

In MD, if you go through the ezpass toll lane without one, they just photo your plate and send your a bill for the toll. You get like 5 free ones (just the cost of the toll), and then they start tacking on an admin charge of like 5 bucks a pop.

I'll be riding my bike on these new express lanes for freeeee. Not that it matters much. Even when it's not for free, a motorcycle can tailgate a car through ezpass toll lanes.

Pocket Ninja:I wonder what the chances are that some halfwit found himself accidentally entering the lanes and tried to back up to get out of it.

This is what's causing it, per the news radio reports. These people should not have licenses and the offenders should get their licenses yanked.

Farking, farking, farking idiots.

How do these people get cars?

Go the eff around you effing morons.

And it's a tiny minority that does this, but causes problems for the rest. Thousands and thousands of cars are moving through here. But it's that "special-kind-of-stupid" assclown that decides the BACK THE FARK UP ON THE 65 MPH BELTWAY to avoid a toll.

The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes. If you accidentally enter the Express Lanes, keep going, take the first exit and go to www.495ExpressLanes.com to pay the toll online, police said.

Who the f*ck backs up on the freeway? I was merging onto the Cross Island from LIE (east Queens, NY) last week and nearly plowed into some idiot who was BACKING UP ON THE ONRAMP. He was around the curve so I couldn't see him until the last minute. Thankfully I was going slow and there wasn't anyone in the next lane over and I could swerve out of the way easily, but holy shiat.

brigid_fitch:Hack Patooey: The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

Not only do I see this all the time, some farkwit BACKED INTO ME once! Going onto an entrance ramp and the car started giving me issues--wouldn't accelerate right, almost every idiot light on the dash starts flashing. Didn't want to pull onto a busy highway when she's acting up, so I pulled onto the shoulder & called AAA. As I'm waiting, a white commercial pickup truck passes me, goes onto the shoulder, and starts backing up. I figure he's being a good Samaritan and wants to see if he can help. Except that he's not slowing down. Hit the horn but the car's turned off--no horn. By the time I turn on the ignition to try the horn again or maybe try to get the hell out of the way, the asshole slams right into me. Bumper crumples, trailer hitch on the back of the truck punctures the radiator. When he tries to pull forward, he nearly rips the radiator out of the engine. No injuries, thankfully, just utter incredulity.

Luckily, the 2 guys he was with told the cops the truth. I don't think anyone, myself included, would EVER believe that somebody got backed into on the shoulder of a busy highway ramp. But it happened.

/CSB//VW's apparently have a "limp-home" mode (Emergency Running Mode). That's what kicked in that day. Never experienced it before.

brigid_fitch:Hack Patooey: The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

Not only do I see this all the time, some farkwit BACKED INTO ME once! Going onto an entrance ramp and the car started giving me issues--wouldn't accelerate right, almost every idiot light on the dash starts flashing. Didn't want to pull onto a busy highway when she's acting up, so I pulled onto the shoulder & called AAA. As I'm waiting, a white commercial pickup truck passes me, goes onto the shoulder, and starts backing up. I figure he's being a good Samaritan and wants to see if he can help. Except that he's not slowing down. Hit the horn but the car's turned off--no horn. By the time I turn on the ignition to try the horn again or maybe try to get the hell out of the way, the asshole slams right into me. Bumper crumples, trailer hitch on the back of the truck punctures the radiator. When he tries to pull forward, he nearly rips the radiator out of the engine. No injuries, thankfully, just utter incredulity.

Luckily, the 2 guys he was with told the cops the truth. I don't think anyone, myself included, would EVER believe that somebody got backed into on the shoulder of a busy highway ramp. But it happened.

/CSB//VW's apparently have a "limp-home" mode (Emergency Running Mode). That's what kicked in that day. Never experienced it before.

Many years ago I was sitting at a light waiting to get on the freeway. Some redneck douche in a big truck in front of me was messing with the two women in his cab and didn't notice that his truck was rolling backward. I saw him rolling toward me and leaned on the horn, he didn't pay attention. When he bumped into me, he floored it and took off. Thankfully I was in my dad's '67 Pontiac Lemans and it didn't even scratch the bumper, but damn.

There has been an extensive media campaign for these new express lanes. The traffic reporters are going out of their way to mention it as well as a big push since summer to get the locals signed up and using E-ZPass. I seriously don't know how much more clear it could be. The only thing I can suggest is parking a state trooper at the entrance 24/7, as people are a lot less likely to do stupid things if they know a cop is right there who will give them an even bigger ticket.

AngryJailhouseFistfark:They rigged up a ramp where anyone can get on the thing and only once you're committed do you realize that there's no toll-taker option. You either have the EZ-Pass radio transponder or you don't. The sign informing you "EZ-Pass Required" is little more than the sign you might have in your neighborhood reading, "Cloaca Lane" or "Mutton Road".

And once you're in, there's no way out NOR do you have any idea what fate awaits you if you don't pay the toll. Could be the Drone comes out of the Pentagon and Hellfire's your illicit motoring ass. Could be the whole thing locks up like those giant steel plates that come up out of the ground around the Capitol Building and other super-secure locations around here. Rather than risk such a fate, the only alternative is to back your shiat on up the ramp to freedom and hope your friendly fellow motorists will take sympathy on you.

Turns out it's a minor fine if you don't have the EZ-Pass, something like $12.50 plus a $1.50 handling fee. They should make the EZ-Pass Required sign a GIANT farking billboard, screaming at you, some radio message broadcasting at 10 Million Megawatts across the entire radio spectrum so that no matter what you're tuned to it'll scream "YOU MUST HAVE AN EZ-PASS OR THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WILL HOLD YOU DOWN AND ADMINISTER AN ANGRY JAILHOUSE FISTFARK!" or some such warning.

Little more than a street sign my arse, they've had signs up for weeks spelled out with shinny farking lights so you can see it day and night that for months. It's also been on the radio and in the news. If people somehow managed to miss this it's thier fault not VDOT.

brigid_fitch:Hack Patooey: The cause of the crash has not been determined but Virginia State Police are urging drivers to be careful and not back up if they mistakenly enter the Express Lanes.

I see it all the time, but who the fark thinks its OK to back up on the highway because you screwed up an exit?

Not only do I see this all the time, some farkwit BACKED INTO ME once! Going onto an entrance ramp and the car started giving me issues--wouldn't accelerate right, almost every idiot light on the dash starts flashing. Didn't want to pull onto a busy highway when she's acting up, so I pulled onto the shoulder & called AAA. As I'm waiting, a white commercial pickup truck passes me, goes onto the shoulder, and starts backing up. I figure he's being a good Samaritan and wants to see if he can help. Except that he's not slowing down. Hit the horn but the car's turned off--no horn. By the time I turn on the ignition to try the horn again or maybe try to get the hell out of the way, the asshole slams right into me. Bumper crumples, trailer hitch on the back of the truck punctures the radiator. When he tries to pull forward, he nearly rips the radiator out of the engine. No injuries, thankfully, just utter incredulity.

Luckily, the 2 guys he was with told the cops the truth. I don't think anyone, myself included, would EVER believe that somebody got backed into on the shoulder of a busy highway ramp. But it happened.

/CSB//VW's apparently have a "limp-home" mode (Emergency Running Mode). That's what kicked in that day. Never experienced it before.

You KNOW who would design a car with some kind of system that allowed the car to over ride YOUR want to drive it manually, don't you?

If you are driving a private passenger vehicle and not towing a trailer, chances are your vehicle has two axles. However, you should contact the E-ZPass agency which manages your account to verify the number of axles on your vehicle. Please make sure that your vehicle has only two axles before your first trip in the 495 Express Lanes.

There was an accident and I did not receive a faster trip. Will I be charged?

We are sorry to hear that your trip in the 495 Express Lanes did not meet you expectations. Refunds will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

What are the administrative fees for toll violations?

If you do not pay your toll, the best thing to do is to immediately go to the ?Missed Toll??page to pay your toll. There will be a $1.50 administrative fee to cover the cost of collecting the toll. If the 495 Express Lanes has to send you a letter with an unpaid invoice, that administrative fee goes up to $12.50 per trip. If you do not pay your first invoice then that fee escalates to $25.00 per trip.

The first two are for entertainment value only. The last says they're a bunch of greedy bastards who should be dumped into the Potomac wearing cement overshoes. The per-trip, rather than per-month, "fee" is unrelated to expenses, it's just a way to gouge revenue. This is how people in Texas end up owing hundreds of thousands of dollars. Some toll roads bundle up your no-account charges for a month and send you a combined bill, plus a monthly processing charge which is related to the actual processing cost.

Within 15 minutes of driving into DC I saw 6 accidents and someone who was trailing us at about 6 feet nearly slammed into our car. WIthin 20 minutes I was cussing like a sailor and wanting to go all ITG on everyone else on the road.